I find that as humans, we are always willing to, not only expect the worst, but believe and be entertained by the worst. We also tend to be fascinated by urban legends with little to no basis whatsoever. What I find amusing is how dogmatically a person will defend something that they not only can't prove, but have virtually no stake in.
The Willie Lynch letter has been circulating for number of years. Supposedly it was a documented speech given by Willie Lynch, a slave owner, who essentially gave the blueprints for keeping black folks enslaved. Simple enough, right? Unfortunately, overwhelming evidence shows that this letter was manufactured MUCH later than this speech was to have taken place. I will say that in reading the letter, it does outline what slavery has done to the black community as a whole, but to attribute this to an individual merely perpetuates the belief that racism is a figment of our imagination. It also makes us seem panicky and uneducated. There are far to many REAL documents, slave journals, blatant acts of racism and xenophobic violence that we can point to, rather than relying on a contrived document that was never really discovered. To me, it is an affront to all individuals who are legitimately involved in the struggle. This document could just as easily have been written by a white man to prove how gullible we as black people are. All I can do is shake my head each time I see it pop up or referenced.
Maya Angelou did not write that shitty FUBU poem and Timberland is not owned and run by the KKK. What's funny is that she has denounced the poem on her website. Funnier still is the fact that Timberland was founded by someone of Hebrew heritage, which would probably exclude him from KKK consideration. However, that has not stopped, or even slowed, the circulation of this "poem." I'm not saying that because of this, folks should go out and make any designer rich. What I am saying is...have an independent thought. Don't patronize or stay away from a certain establishment or brand simply because Maya Angelou (or anyone else) says so. (No disrespect, but I'm not taking fashion advice from a 70+ year old woman.) What I'm also saying is STOP FORWARDING THAT HORRIBLE POEM.
The Wendy Williams gossip list...what can I say about that list that hasn't been said about Afghanistan? (Shameless and gratuitous Chappelle's Show ripoff.) Basically, this is a list of celebrities that are freaks, have stank breath, stank genitalia, homosexual, bisexual, lying about their age, etc. The obsession with celebrity is astounding to me. Celebrities are human beings, so it stands to reason that there are some who will be gay, some will be freaks, some will have breath that smells like 15 pounds of get back and so forth. I don't know anyone for being interested in those things, but that isn't my cup of tea. If Will Smith wants me to know that he's gay, he'll call me and tell me. Wendy recently stated that the list is not affiliated with her...in all fairness though, you can give my saying this as much credence as I gave that over-circulated email.
My love for Jesus is not dependent upon whether or not I forward your email. That 12 year old girl has been in remission for 8 years and is now a dancer at Big Daddy's Gentlemen's Club. If you think that Bill Gates is going to cut you a check for forwarding a stupid ass email rather than actually working, you are out of your damned mind. Sophia Stewart has NOT won her case against the Wachowski Brothers. I could go on forever.
To state it simply, just because your cousin's babysitter's hairdresser's uncle's girlfriend sent you an email, that doesn't make it true and it most definitely does not make it worth of dogmatic defense.
That is all. Go back to your lives citizens.
The Willie Lynch letter has been circulating for number of years. Supposedly it was a documented speech given by Willie Lynch, a slave owner, who essentially gave the blueprints for keeping black folks enslaved. Simple enough, right? Unfortunately, overwhelming evidence shows that this letter was manufactured MUCH later than this speech was to have taken place. I will say that in reading the letter, it does outline what slavery has done to the black community as a whole, but to attribute this to an individual merely perpetuates the belief that racism is a figment of our imagination. It also makes us seem panicky and uneducated. There are far to many REAL documents, slave journals, blatant acts of racism and xenophobic violence that we can point to, rather than relying on a contrived document that was never really discovered. To me, it is an affront to all individuals who are legitimately involved in the struggle. This document could just as easily have been written by a white man to prove how gullible we as black people are. All I can do is shake my head each time I see it pop up or referenced.
Maya Angelou did not write that shitty FUBU poem and Timberland is not owned and run by the KKK. What's funny is that she has denounced the poem on her website. Funnier still is the fact that Timberland was founded by someone of Hebrew heritage, which would probably exclude him from KKK consideration. However, that has not stopped, or even slowed, the circulation of this "poem." I'm not saying that because of this, folks should go out and make any designer rich. What I am saying is...have an independent thought. Don't patronize or stay away from a certain establishment or brand simply because Maya Angelou (or anyone else) says so. (No disrespect, but I'm not taking fashion advice from a 70+ year old woman.) What I'm also saying is STOP FORWARDING THAT HORRIBLE POEM.
The Wendy Williams gossip list...what can I say about that list that hasn't been said about Afghanistan? (Shameless and gratuitous Chappelle's Show ripoff.) Basically, this is a list of celebrities that are freaks, have stank breath, stank genitalia, homosexual, bisexual, lying about their age, etc. The obsession with celebrity is astounding to me. Celebrities are human beings, so it stands to reason that there are some who will be gay, some will be freaks, some will have breath that smells like 15 pounds of get back and so forth. I don't know anyone for being interested in those things, but that isn't my cup of tea. If Will Smith wants me to know that he's gay, he'll call me and tell me. Wendy recently stated that the list is not affiliated with her...in all fairness though, you can give my saying this as much credence as I gave that over-circulated email.
My love for Jesus is not dependent upon whether or not I forward your email. That 12 year old girl has been in remission for 8 years and is now a dancer at Big Daddy's Gentlemen's Club. If you think that Bill Gates is going to cut you a check for forwarding a stupid ass email rather than actually working, you are out of your damned mind. Sophia Stewart has NOT won her case against the Wachowski Brothers. I could go on forever.
To state it simply, just because your cousin's babysitter's hairdresser's uncle's girlfriend sent you an email, that doesn't make it true and it most definitely does not make it worth of dogmatic defense.
That is all. Go back to your lives citizens.
2 comments:
Breez...I KNOW Willie Lynch wrote that letter; I was there when he did it! Hell...I co-wrote the first paragraph! There...mystery solved. And he would've gotten away with it too if it wasn't for those darn kids and that dog! LOL! I feel you. I've been guilty of falling prey to some of those urban legends too. Remember the black-market kidney scare? LOL! To say the least, people are always looking for the spectacular answers to questions that sometimes aren't that relative to begin with. Excellent post, luv. Excelsior!
I know this bitch didn't just spam my blog AGAIN!
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